Designer L'Wren Scott's rep denies fashion firm had financial woes

[March 22, 2014]  NEW YORK (Reuters) — Representatives of fashion designer L'Wren Scott, who committed suicide this week, denied reports that her fashion company had been struggling and said she had been planning to restructure her global business.

PR Consulting, which represents Scott and her company, LS Fashion Limited, said in a statement on Friday that financial figures about her firm reported in the media were "misleading and inaccurate."

"Her business overall was only seven years old and although some areas of the business had not yet reached their potential, other parts of her business were proving successful," the statement said.

"Ms. Scott was considering a re-structure of her global business."

Although company accounts filed last October in London showed the firm reported a loss of 4.3 million euros ($5.99 million) in 2012, an increase from a 3.0 million euro loss the previous year, her representatives said the long-term prospects were encouraging.

"The parent company of LS Fashion Limited based in America had made a standard loan investment to the UK subsidiary. LS Fashion Limited is fully able to meet the company's liabilities and pay all suppliers and customers," it added.

Scott, 49, who was the girlfriend of Rolling Stones singer Mick Jagger, was found dead in her high-rise apartment in Manhattan's upscale Chelsea neighborhood on Monday. The medical examiner's office ruled that the former fashion model and stylist had committed suicide by hanging.

No details about funeral arrangements have been released.

Scott and Jagger had been together since 2001. The Rolling Stones postponed seven concerts in Australia and New Zealand, part of a world tour, following news of her death.

Scott's fashions, with their sleek, sexy silhouettes, have been worn by Hollywood stars such as Amy Adams and Nicole Kidman, who was her friend, and First Lady Michelle Obama.

American fashion critic Cathy Horyn, a friend of Scott's, said earlier this week in the New York Times that the designer had planned to close her business.

Members of Scott's team said they had lost a great friend and an inspiring leader.

"We are grieving privately and whilst we appreciate the incredible tributes that have been paid in the media by those who knew L'Wren, we strongly object to some of the media's intrusion into issues that are not only untrue and misleading," they said in a statement.

"We ask that our privacy and that of L'Wren's family and close friends be respected at this difficult time," they added.

Scott's representatives said no further statements would be made for the time being.

(Reporting by Patricia Reaney; editing by Eric Kelsey and Richard Chang)

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